Breathe
by Adonis blue
Summary: Alice sits at the top of the university world. But when the future surprises her, can she keep the past from taking over? Will she trust her instincts & hold the present together? Who knows. Alice might, if only she could just get a moment to breathe...
1. One Year Earlier

A/N: I normally don't write something this AU, but I was just messing around telling my friend this story one day, and she encouraged me to post it. This is just something little to set the stage. I hope it doesn't bore you so much that you refuse to come back for an actual chapter.

Oh, and just because I don't post this sort of thing in summaries: A/U, all human. Canon pairings. Will be primarily Alice/Jasper, but include enough of Bella/Edward and Rosalie/Emmett to make them important players. Told primarily from Alice's POV, 1st person, but will occasionally switch around. Hrm...what else? Oh, this is not a songfic, because I typically skip right over the songs when I read them, but as my characters might be inclined to do artsy things (Yeah, it's cliché. So sue me. If something works, it works.), a song or two might make an appearance. Rated M just to be safe, as they say.

Now, without further ado...

**Breathe**

_Alice sits at the top of the university world: with best friends to party with, a brother to torture, a promising start to a career, and a few good hobbies, she knows what she wants and exactly how to get it out of life. But when the future manages to surprise her, can she keep the past from taking over? For now, she's got to trust her instincts and focus on holding the present together. If only she could just get a moment to Breathe..._

**Prologue: One Year Earlier**

My hand hovered unconsciously above my cell as my eyes traveled down the page.

A moment later, my phone buzzed.

"Hey, Alice."

"Hey Rachel, what's up?"

"You have a trasnfer on your floor named Isabella Swan?"

"Bella? Yeah. In 643."

"Her mom called. She's worried about her." I sighed. Helicopter parents drove me nuts.

"Okay. I haven't heard her crying or anything..."

"Mom says she's not like that, but 'something in her voice' made her worry she's not adjusting too well. Mom lives in Florida and Dad in Washington, so mid New York isn't exactly close to home. Mom's worried she feels isolated."

"I suppose. It _is_ only the second day."

"Will you go check on her?" The resident director asked.

"Of course. I'm on my way." I sighed and looked longingly at the play script in front of me. Oh well, I guess old Will would have to wait. It's not like I hadn't read _The Merchant of Venice_ a thousand times; I was hoping to watch the movie again tonight. But, it was my job to take care of the floor of girls, and I always did what I could to the best of my ability.

I walked down the hall to 643, saying hello into the few girls who left their doors open at 12:23 a.m. I couldn't criticize though. I never slept either.

Reaching my destination, I knocked on 643. "Who is it?" a slightly muffled voice called. Oh crap, she had been crying.

"Hi, Bella?" I remembered meeting her on move-in day. She'd said she preferred Bella to her given name, and I hoped that would earn me some points. "It's Alice, your RA?"

"Hi Alice," she sniffled. She held a small dog stuffed animal in her hands.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure."

_One word answers_, I thought, _great_! _So do I warm her up or dive right in?_

"So how are you doing?" _Yep, I was a dive-right-in kinda gal._

"Fine," she obviously lied. And sucked at it, for lack of a better word.

I looked at her. "I'm going home," she assured me after a moment. "I just can't do it."

"It's only been a few days, give it a chance. Everyone feels like that at first."

She looked at me, full of doubt. "I wasn't like this before. At Washington state."

"I promise, you're not the only one."

"Did you get like this?"

The lie started to form on my lips, but I decided to bend the truth just a bit. After all, my reality seemed completely different from hers, and I didn't need to get in to that. "Of course I missed the things I'd known and the people I love. That's natural."

"So I'm not a complete freak?"

"No, Bella, you're not a freak at all. This is nothing. My roommate last year, she was so homesick that she could barely function. She cried every night. But she got through it."

"She's still here?"

"Yep," I nodded. I could see I had her hovering near the hook. She just needed to be a little bit closer.

"You just do whatever you have to to make yourself less homesick. You can call home or write e-mails or even letters. And you do stuff here to keep yourself busy. For example, we have a great theatre department and an awesome dance team. Auditions for both are next week. You should definitely come."

"I can't dance," she promised, shaking her head. "I tried gymnastics for a while, but I fractured just about everything you're not supposed to. I'm a total disaster."

I smiled. She was definitely loosening up. "You _can_ dance. And _I_ just happen to be a really great teacher. Our team is all student-taught and you don't have to have experience."

"Maybe..."

"It's settled. You're coming with me. I'll be heartbroken if you don't."

She smiled. "I guess."

Hook, line and sinker. "You'll have to stay until next week, you know."

"I'll stay," she said. "Just to see."

But I knew I had her. I stayed in her room until her eyes began to droop. We talked past two about Shakespeare (although she claimed her favorite play as Romeo and Juliet-yech), amusement parks and sights in the area, her long-distance army boyfriend who she transferred here to be closer to, gymnastics, and dance. And when I finally left room 643 an hour and a half later, I knew I would be seeing a lot more of Isabella Swan.


	2. Breathe

**A/N:** I know I said all that crap about POV, but for this first chapter, I wanted someone else's view of Alice, and moreover, I wanted an outsider's opinion of Bella. So that leaves me with Jasper as the 1st narrator.

It also occurred to me that I forgot to **disclaim** anything, though if you weren't aware that _Twiligh_t does not belong to me, as I am not Stephenie Meyer, because if I were, I would never bastardize my own story this way, well, then, I don't know what to say.

P.S. The brilliant song 'Breathe (2 a.m.)' belongs to Anna Nalick and is the catalyst for this whole storythingy, so excuse the lyrics. I tried to weave them with important stuff. But, really, the song is beautiful, so go check it out.

**Breathe**

"C'mon Bella!" I heard someone call from the hall. It took a chance on lifting my eyes from the neck of the my guitar, where I was tweaking a few of the strings. I don't know why I cared so much. Edward had told me that his sister and a few of her friends were coming to jam with us. The only name I remembered was Isabella—_Bella—_Swan. I remembered because of the way Edward had said her name. He unconsciously laid claim to her in that verbal introduction.

Moving here, I didn't care much about making friends. But, when Edward had introduced himself as I was strumming in the courtyard, inviting me to a jam session, I had a difficult time coming up with an excuse not to go. Any opportunity to play the guitar was too difficult to pass up, even if I wasn't sure that I was ready to reenter the world of anything social. That sort of stuff took too much out of me. It's not that I didn't want friends, I just spent the last two years of my life recovering from the betrayal of people who I thought loved me. That kind of thing sucked. Ass.

"You don't have to sing," the voice called again, and I felt my head snap up. "But you will..."

"Alice, I refuse." Alice, I thought. That was Edward's sister.

"You're too good of a friend to let me sing off key by myself."

"Thanks."

"I mean me, of course. You can sing on key. Just wait til you hear what Edward's come up with this time."

"Alice would you stop!" Edward shouted into the hall. I turned my attention back to my instrument, realizing for the first time that it strayed.

"Nope!" The voice called back.

"Sorry," Edward warned, "she's a bit of a pain in the ass."

"But a lovely pain in the ass. Hello, Edward!"

He stood up from the piano bench when she entered, and nodded to her. "Bella, glad you could come."

"Alice practically dragged me."

"Where's Rose?" Edward asked.

"Where else?" shrugged Alice, a dark look crossing her face. " With the first class prick."

"I'd like to catch him in a dark alley." Emmett, who'd been finding a good spot to put his pad, finally spoke up. I liked him. Edward was the more thoughtful type, carefully calculating. Emmett, he was all heart—one emotion at a time. That's how I liked it. The three of us had only sat here for a half hour, waiting for the girls, but I had already figured out that much.

"There's a line," mumbled Alice, before turning her bright eyes on me. They were hazel, but they looked almost gold against her short black hair. It was much shorter than any girls' I was used to, but it somehow fit her face. I remembered that Edward had said she was adopted, and I'm glad, because I probably wouldn't have been able to stop something obnoxious like 'which one of you is the milkman's?' from coming out of my mouth.

The two looked nothing alike. Alice was shorter than Edward by a considerable amount. From far away, I could have mistaken her for a child, she was so tiny. And—whoa. _Music_. I chanted in my head. _Guitar_. I repeated the mantra.

"Edward, aren't you going to introduce us, or will you be perpetually rude?"

"Ha. Ha. Alice, this is Jasper Whitlock. He's in my American History. Jasper, this obnoxious little thing is my sister Alice, and-."

Before Edward could continue, Alice stuck out her tongue and interrupted him. "Nice to meet you, Jasper. I'm the less-obnoxious-than-my-brother, Alice."

Alice put out her hand, and my natural reaction was to stick out the hand with my pick in it. I nearly cursed when I felt the plastic between our hands. When we pulled back, she had my blue pick. My favorite blue pick. "Here" she smiled, holding it out. When I took it from her, static jumped between our fingers, causing the both of us to pull back. "Oh, sorry," she apologized. "Must have been from dragging Bella down the hallway," she added, glaring at her friend. "Jasper Whitlock, this is my protegee, Bella Swan."

Bella nodded at me shyly. The two girls were clearly opposite in almost every way. Except maybe that Bella wasn't much taller than Alice. Of course, as my mother joked, everyone was short to me.

"Protegee?" I asked, latching on to something Alice had said. It was such an odd introduction.

"Bella's my junior captain on the dance team."

"She taught me everything I know," nodded Bella, glowing.

Alice rolled her eyes, before zeroing in on me. It made me slightly uncomfortable, the way she stared at me, as if she were fitting me into some master plan. "Do you dance, Jasper?"

Emmett groaned. "Alice!" barked Edward. "You are not recruiting all my friends to your dance team!"

I started. Friends? Since when did we become friends. I mean, I liked him well enough, but we'd just met, for Christ's sake.

"We'll see," she said, looking me over. "We'll talk more about it later."

"You are so annoying," growled Edward, putting some sheets onto the piano.

"Yep. That's why you love me," trilled Alice, skipping over to the giant black Steinway. Bella and Emmett were ignoring this like it was an everyday occurrence, which, I realized, it probably was.

"Are you ready?" asked an exasperated Edward."

"Of course. C'mon over here, Bella. Wait 'til you hear it. Edward's a genius."

I could only see him from the side, but the back of his neck and his ear was pretty red, so I guessed he was blushing, the poor s.o.b. He must have it bad for Bella. I wondered if she knew.

"I am not," Edward countered, pushing any doubt as to whether he and Alice were siblings in spirit out of my mind. "You helped with the lyrics." My eyes were drawn to her once again. Impressive. A girl who dances and writes music. That would be hot—if I were looking out for that sort of thing, of course.

Alice wrinkled her nose, "Nah, don't let him fool you. I suck at poetry. I just filled in a few holes." She waved her hand dismissively. "Get on with it."

"I've been trying to," Edward grumbled, before putting his hand on the keys. He froze and turned to me and Emmett. "Just jump in whenever. And Em, it's not a rock song."

"Yeah, okay. Boring it is," shrugged Emmett. I chuckled, and Emmett grinned at me. These guys really weren't so bad.

"Men," mumbled Bella, sharing a look with Alice. Edward picked a note and Alice turned back to the piano.

"I'm sorry in advance for butchering this." Edward just looked at her, and as he struck the first note, she began to sing.

"_2 a.m. And she calls me 'cause I'm still awake, _

Alice hadn't fully been lying. She wasn't the best singer in the world. She wasn't bad, though. It was almost as if the song wasn't meant for her—she was forcing her voice to stay in the Alto region.

_Can you help me unravel my latest mistake,_

_I don't love him._

Another two lines, and I'd changed my mind. The song was somehow made for her and not made for her. It didn't really make sense, I knew, but that was all I could come up with. It sounded so right for her quality of voice. It was certainly bluesy enough. Something about it reminded me of home.

_Winter just wasn't my season._

My finger picked up and began to strum with the next set.

_Yeah, we walk through the doors, so accusing their eyes, _

_like they have any right at all to criticize,_

I looked up, to make sure I was keeping pace with Edward—I didn't want him to suddenly change on me. En route, Alice caught my eye and nodded in approval, as if to say, 'Good job coming in at the right time.' Well, of course I did. I'm a musician. Or so I claim. It just seemed like the right moment.

_Hypocrites you're all here for the very same reason. _

I ducked my head, listening to the music. The lyrics were getting interesting. Throwing around the word 'hypocrites' garnered an automatic audience, at least around college students.

_'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable and_

_Life's like an hourglass, glued to the table, _

_No one can find the rewind button, girl, _

_So cradle your head in your hands,_

At that moment, I realized what reminded me of home, what made the song right for Alice. While she sang, a southern lilt came out at the end of some of the phrases. I wondered where she was originally from. Nobody could fake an accent that well. Then I wondered why I cared. I was off women. The end. I didn't have the capacity to love, or even like, at least not for a while. Whoa, love? Where did that come from? Who said anything about that? I concentrated on the melody.

_And breathe, just breathe. _

_Whoa, breathe, just breathe. _

Yep, it was definitely meant for a chick to sing. Still, you couldn't deny that the boy was a poet. I wondered what else he'd written and suddenly felt inferior. My playing paused. By some stroke of genius luck, he moved into a bridge, and guitar really wasn't that necessary.

"C'mon, Bella. You're turn." Bella gave her a pleading look, but I wouldn't have argued with that tone in Alice's voice either. Alice stepped aside and grabbed the music off of the piano, handing it to Bella. I guess Edward didn't need it, having written the song and all.

"_May he turned 21 on the base of Fort Bliss, _

When Bella began singing, I was left with no doubt as to who held the perfect voice for the song. She started out soft and was a little nasally, perhaps, but, just like Alice's accent, it fit. Bella was the Alto.

_Just today he sat down to the flask in his fist._

As she sank deeper into the verse, the mood in the room shifted. It was so obvious, I could have hooked onto it with my big toe.

_Ain't been sober, since maybe...October... last...year. _

She gasped in through as much of the verse as she could before turning to go. Only Edward continued to play. The girl was almost in tears. I could see them shining in her eyes, and feel them pounding to escape. She was a sobber; I could tell that when she finally let loose, she would go on for a while.

She had barely taken one step before Alice clasped her wrist and held her fast to spot. Which was funny, you know, since Alice was so small. If the situation weren't so serious feeling, I probably would have laughed. As it was, I almost felt like crying along with Bella. My mom always called me overly empathetic. This was ridiculous. I began focusing on the guitar again to clear my head when the gears in my brain finally snapped together.

No wonder the song was perfect for Bella's voice. It wasn't only written _for_ her; it was written _about_ her. That explained a lot – like why she was so upset. I wondered briefly who the alcoholic soldier in her life was, before deciding it really wasn't any of my business.

Alice picked up, while Bella struggled for self control.

"_You can see he's been down for a while, _

_But my god-"_

Bella came in then, her voice all crackling with tears and her face red as a sunset.

"_-it's so beautiful when the boy smiles,_

_wanna hold him-"_

Bella only took her eyes off Alice to read the lyric sheet, and Alice half-smiled and raised her eyebrows.

"_maybe I'll just sing about it."_

They returned to the chorus then, Bella taking a brief break before joining in.

"_'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable and_

_Life's like an hourglass, glued to the table, _

As soon as Bella returned to singing, Alice bumped her notes up an octave. Man, she sounded so much better. Still not the perfect singer, but more comfortable for sure.

_No one can find the rewind button, boys,_

_So cradle your head in your hands,_

They finished another chorus together, and I tried to use the guitar to connect the gap between the two.

"_And breathe, just breathe_

_Oh oh breathe, just breathe..."_

Bella smiled and stayed, but she set the lyric sheets back on the piano. I could tell she was far more upset than she was letting on. It was kind of impressive now, her holding it all together, but I didn't want to be Edward or Alice later on. I wondered if she would be mad at Edward, for writing this song about her. Poor shmuck. He took a big chance doing that. I hope it would pay off for him. I wished she would calm down, for both their sakes.

This time, Edward jumped in singing with Alice, surprising me. My hand kept going though, led on by the song. These guys were pretty cool. It wouldn't be so bad, playing with them again.

"_There's a light at each end of this tunnel, you shout_

_'Cause you're just as far in as you'll ever be out_

Bella was smiling at Alice, now. She at least _looked_ calmer.

"_And these mistakes you've made, you'll just make them again._

_If-_

For some reason, Alice abruptly stopped singing, leaving Edward to finish out the verse. I admitted, begrudgingly that the guy could also sing. Maybe I shouldn't hang around them. It'd be a constant reminder of how much I suck.

"_-you'd only try turning around."_

Then I saw that Alice had planned it, the fox. Because startled by the change, Bella had turned around, staring right at Edward. His neck and ears turned beet red again. He glared at Alice once Bella turned her attention elsewhere.

I wanted to slap him for looking that way. She was just trying to help him out. Bella Swan could probably tell him to lick her boots and he'd take it literally and do it, if he thought it would help. I had to refocus on the music. I forbade myself from acting on what I was coming to realize as an admittedly obvious attraction I felt to Edward's little sister. I had instituted a self-ban on L-words (like, love), but my body had some other ideas about lust. I'd have to get that under control.

Then, Alice stepped forward, laid a hand on the piano, and opened her mouth. Even before the words came out, I felt a tug at my gut that had nothing to do with lust. It made me want to curl up in a ball and hide in a rat hole. Where was that coming from? Her?

"_2 a.m. and I'm still awake writing a song, _

_If I get it all down on paper, it's no longer inside of me, _

_threatening the life if belongs to. _

It's a good thing her voice was complimented best at this part by the piano, because what with the ache in my gut and the mesmerizing shine of her eyes over the rise and fall of her chest, I wasn't playing a note.

_And I feel like I'm naked in front of the crowd_

_'Cause these words are my diary, screamin' out loud!_

_And I know that you'll use them, however you want to..."_

Some part of me wondered vaguely if Alice had been referring to these verses when she's said 'fill in the holes.'

"_'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable, _

Bella joined back in here. Suddenly, I felt a sharp crack on the back of my head that reminded me of when my mother used to chase me with a wooden cooking spoon.

_And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table, _

I rubbed the back of my skull and turned to glare at Emmett. He was so dead. But he didn't seem to care.

_No one can find the rewind button, now_

I'd like to find the rewind button so I could catch Emmett in the act and snap his stick in two. Glancing up, I thought I saw Alice smiling, her eyes gleaming mischievously. Crap. Had I been staring that much? _No women_, I chanted.

_So sing it if you understand._

I understand that her dark hair looked perfect against pale skin with the hint of an olive tone. It was such a weird color-but in a good way. I shook my head. Music, Music Music.

_And breathe, just breathe, _

_Whoa breathe, just breathe, _

Rather than sing the final chorus, Alice dropped back, creating Soprano dips around Bella's words. I tried to play to match her, but went a bit too high. I heard a chuckle from Emmett. _I don't care_, I told myself. _It doesn't matter_.

What in the world was I doing? I focused on playing the last few chords. I was surprised that I needed to wipe away sweat from my forehead. That was one hell of a song.

"The music is perfect, Edward. The song's-" I looked up. Alice had suddenly stopped, mid-sentence. She looked kind of odd. "beautiful," she whispered, her eyes staring off into space.

"Alice?" said, Edward, which was strange because they were right next to each other. It wasn't that he'd said her name, but the way he'd said it.

"Sorry," she smiled shaking her head with a laugh. "I was daydreaming."

"Do you-?"

"Yes, next Saturday."

"So..." whistled Emmett, "care to share with the crowd?"

"Are you coming to my dance class next weekend?" asked Alice.

"Can I partner Rose?"

"Kill Royce, and absolutely you can partner her, but you've got to make it look like an accident. We don't do jail performances."

Bella laughed. Then it clicked with me. "Wait. Royce King?"

Alice turned to me. "Yes?"

"And Rosalie-Rose Hale?"

"You know her?" asked Edward.

"How do _you_ know her?" I countered.

"She's the third part of our trifecta, as she calls it," answered Bella, pulling up a rolling chair from the side wall and sitting down and gesturing to herself and Alice.

"She's sexy," called Emmett, scooting up.

"But dating-"

"A total douchebag," I finished Alice's sentence. "I know. She's my cousin."

"She's your..."

"Yep. Mother's side."

"Oh! That's crazy."

"Small world," added Bella.

"What happened to you?" asked Emmett. I just looked at him, unsure of what he wanted. "I mean, dude, she's hot, and you're so..."

Edward groaned, but I just smiled and shrugged. "There's gotta be one fluke in every family." Teasing felt like an easy acceptance, and I would take it. "I didn't realize you were talking about her before."

"Yeah. She deserted us for Royce, again. I just wish she could see him for what he is," Alice sighed. "I'd like to wrap him in those silk sheets of his and drain out his blood."

Remind me not to mess with her. "I agree," I nodded, and this time, Emmett didn't make fun of me. "I'm waiting for my aunt and uncle to wake up and throw him out the next time he visits, but it hasn't happened yet."

"Oh, wait. You don't care that I called your cousin hot, right?" All heads turned toward Emmett, and Alice rolled her eyes. Now that we were closer, I could see they were actually a little darker-nearly green around the Iris then fading into a hazel, but sometimes, when she smiled, or the light hit them the right way, I could see those flashes of gold.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. "Uh. no. I don't care."

"Good, because I'd totally be all over her if-" I'm not sure what my face looked like, but I saw everyone else's, and if they were at all close to mine, no wonder Emmett shut up. "Too far?" he asked.

"Always," groaned Alice.

"Uh, just a lil," I added.

"Right, well-" Emmett must have been about to put his foot in his mouth again, because Alice jumped in, cutting him off.

"Unfortunately, Rose has to realize that for herself. It's going to take a bit longer that we all would like. You know how stubborn she is. The fact remains, however, that I need dancers." Something passed over, and her face changed. The corner of her pouty mouth lifted into an 'I know something you don't know' smirk. "Emmett, what if I could say there's a chance you'd dance with Rosalie in the end, but you couldn't practice with her. Would you practice with me? On the side?"

Emmett didn't answer at first. If it were me, I'd take her offer for private lessons of any kind, even if they were in cake decorating or needlepoint. Dancing wasn't so bad. My mom had forced me into some ballroom classes when I was younger—not that I shared that with anyone. The only thing I had really taken to was swing, probably because the music was so infectious, and there was less touching of girls. Looking at Alice, I wished I had chosen something like salsa or tango. Shit. I was supposed to be thinking like a pastor.

"You're sure?"

"Emmett," Alice rolled her eyes, "just trust me, will you?"

I half-hoped he'd say no. He was talking about my cousin—that was a little weird, I acknowledged. There couldn't be any other reason.

"Sure, if it'll get me in good with Rose, I'll sacrifice my manhood."

"Thank God," breathed Edward. " Now I don't have to suffer through that alone."

Alice sighed. "Edward, I know that deep down, although you don't want to admit it, you _like_ to dance."

Edward grimaced like a Christian martyr, but I figured Alice was right. Edward looked at me, like he could read my mind. He shrugged before smiling crookedly. I wondered faintly if it was a family trait before remembering the two really weren't related. Huh. They were a lot more alike than I'd initially thought.

"So that, leaves you, Jasper," smiled Alice, turning her full attention to me.

"Uh, what?"

"We need one more person."

"And by person, she means, those of us with little soldiers." I blinked before understanding. It was that word. "She has to round us all up before cutting off our manhood."

"Emmett," Bella said exasperatedly. "Stop."

"You're scaring him," smiled Alice, and it frustrated me, how easy it was to smile back.

Emmett snorted, and I snatched one of his drumsticks and smacked him with it. Served him right. But he still didn't shut up. "He's gone. Over the edge. Castrated." I went for him again, and he tried to duck out of the way. I was proud that I landed a few hits.

"So you'll dance with us?"

I shrugged. "I'm not very good."

Alice grinned, the smile lighting up her whole face. I supposed she sensed victory. "That's okay. I'm a _very_ good teacher."

"It's true," Bella shrugged. "If she can teach me to dance, she can teach anyone."

"This is just for my dance—it's swing—the Lindy Hop?" I shook my head like I didn't know what she was talking about. I still had some manhood to preserve. "But I'm sure Angela would love it if you also did her tango..." What the hell? Could _she_ read my mind? "You don't have to- but Angela would be very grateful. We're actually two men short in that one. Emmett." She glared at Emmett.

"Uh..."

"Edward's in that one, too."

"I've never done anything like that before."

"Angela's a good teacher."

"I-"

"Please?" Her eyes got wider. She sure knew how to play it. Damn woman. I didn't think I could say no.

Sure enough... "I suppose so, iffin' the other guys'll be there. I caught myself rubbing the back of my neck, damn nervous habits.

"Brilliant!" she smiled.

She sure was. Wow. If that didn't sound like some cheesy line from one of my mama's soaps.

"Saturday at 10 a.m. Sharp." Shit. I was a night person. Like the patsy I turned into, I just nodded. "Thanks so much, Jasper. You'll have fun, I know it." She laid a hand on my arm. I felt a fire erupt there, as if I had the fever.

"Welcome to the dark side, as Rosalie would say," quipped Emmett, snatching back his stick while I was busy trying to keep that infernal flame from from spreading.

"We have cookies!" smiled Alice.

She and Bella laughed, sharing some inside joke. Her laughter sounded like bells. I briefly wondered if Edward would mind my taking out his sister. Briefly, because I had to squash that thought. This sort of instant attraction is what got me in deep with Maria—and held me there, long after I should have kicked her to the curb.

Then again, it didn't feel the same, this thing with Alice, but I didn't quite understand what was going on. It was, if I was honest, probably lust. A guy who swears off women for a while can get pretty caught up in the moment—in any moment, frankly. I'd have to back off a bit—at least until I actually got to know her. Just guessing here, but I don't know that Edward would appreciate that sort of strategic maneuver toward his sister.

I felt eyes on me, and when I looked up, he and Alice were staring at me. I got the feeling, for the second time that day, that Edward could somehow tell what I was thinking about. I wanted to shout out that he loved Bella, just to get the attention away from me. "What?" I asked, as innocently as I could.

"You looked deep in thought," Alice said.

"Impossible," joked Emmett. They all laughed. Except her. She still studied me like she was pouring over frickin' Shakespeare.

"Don't assume that all people are at your intellectual level, Emmett," shot off Bella. That got us all going good, and there's Bella, blushing through her laughter, Edward staring at her like she was he first human to turn red. Me, I was trying not to look at Alice, but I could sure hear that laugh again.

"Well, that's us." Alice stood, brushing off her skirt.

"We were going to eat. You don't want to come?"

"We have a meeting with Lauren." Alice wrinkled her nose. It turned up slightly at the end, and when she did that, she looked like that cartoon fairy with the green loincloth my sister's always going on about. Except not blonde. "She wants to choreograph."

"Say no," answered Edward immediately.

"I've been putting her off for years, but Bella's inclined to be a bit too forgiving of people's natures." Alice answered, rolling her eyes.

"She deserves a chance. If she's terrible, then condemn her," stated Bella quietly, but firmly.

"Yeah, yeah. We'll see."

"Normally, I wouldn't bet against you, but give her a chance, at least."

"Urgh, fine! I said I would. And when this comes back to bite you, I'll be saying 'I told you so.'"

"And if it doesn't?" Alice took a deep breath to speak, only to get cut off by Bella. "Goodbye guys. Nice meeting you, Jasper."

Alice smiled—at me. Definitely at me. "I'll see you Saturday." Then she turned back to Bella. "That is, if I live through this _horrific_ meeting."

The girls bickered all the way down the hall. I wanted to turn to Edward and ask about the inspiration for the song. I wanted to ask just what I had gotten myself into, agreeing to _dance_ at 10 a.m. I wanted to ask more about Alice—what she liked and whether she was attached.

Instead, I opened my mouth and asked the safest question I could think of. "So, where are we going to eat?"


	3. One Day

A/N: I had some trouble with this chapter, and how I wanted several things to play out. I kept going back and forth; some of my characters just couldn't make up their minds. I've been away sorting things out. But Alice has spoken & all is in order now. I'm trying to get everything set so as to update _much _more regularly... this has the potential to go on for a while, if I'm motivated enough. That said, I am not above begging, so please review? _Please_? I like constructive criticism, but I'll take a 'hey howareya' at this point.

Disclaimer: Naturally, none of the character's spirits belong to me. Those were created by Stephanie Meyer. I just gave them another life. This installment brought to you by chocolate stout cake, Ceili Dancing, Barnes & Noble, and Bugattis, all of which are awesome. Oh, and Coke, which is not my bag, but to each her own.

* * *

**One Day**

"So, that went well," Bella offered hopefully after our 'date' with Lauren.

I scowled. Much to my disappointment, she did have some decent ideas. "She sounds good," I grudgingly offered. "Whether she can actually deliver is still debatable. I pushed open the door to my dorm room. It was closer than hers. Plus, I kept all of the dance team paperwork here, and I needed to move Lauren's file from dancer to choreographer, unfortunately.

Bella smiled. "That's as good as a yes I'm going to get from you. I was right," she added in a slightly singsong voice.

"This is not over yet."

"Sure," she shrugged. As she closed the door, her attitude changed. Even my fish stopped his circling. "Riley has a new girlfriend."

My mouth fell open, the paperwork I had been transferring lay forgotten on the desk. "What?"

She twisted her lanyard around her fingers. "I called him yesterday."

"You _what?_" I knew my voice had moved beyond friendly, but I couldn't help it.

"This is why I didn't tell you, Alice," she grumbled. "I knew you would be upset."

"Of course I'm upset!" _You're supposed to be getting over him so you can date my brother one day! One day in the next millenium. Urgh. _Instead of blurting what I thought, I responded with the age-old argument. "I'm your best friend, and I'd be a pretty bad one if I didn't get upset over you calling your lowlife ex to see when he would be in town!"

She blushed, "I never said that!"

"Bella, I'm your best friend. You didn't have to."

"I just wanted to see if he stopped drinking..." She met my accusation head on. "We didn't exactly leave things on good terms. I have questions."

"Yes, because he'd tell you the truth, just like he said he wasn't doing drugs and drinking before," I said sarcastically. Sure, it was a little insensitive, but she had been moving on. And I had too look out for my family too; if Edward pined away any harder, he'd turn into a girl.

"As soon as Riley ships into New York, we're taking a vacation to Forks. Oh, er, scratch that. Somewhere with a mall. I hear Ranier Square is nice."

"People can change, Alice."

"Not if they don't want to, Bella."

"You just don't like men."

Now it was my turn to go on the defensive. "That's not true!" She simply stared at me. "Okay, fine. But I like Edward, and Carlisle, and Emmett's pretty awesome. Mike's annoying, but okay. Professor Scott's cool, if you like sagacity. See, I like plenty of men."

"What about Jasper?"

I felt a smile tug at my lips, but I was a master at suppression. "I don't even know him."

Bella nodded, smiling. "Uh huh."

I rethought my answer. "I just met him today. But he agreed to dance, so that gets him a few points in my books. Until our future meetings, I'm suspending judgment."

"And he's nice looking."

I shrugged like it didn't matter to me. "If tall, guitar playing blondes are your type."

"They _are_ your type."

"Nah, I like brunettes. It's tall, _dark _and handsome. And stop trying to change the subject." We were both playing a game of dodging questions. It's just, the way I saw it, mine wasn't really that big of deal.

"I didn't really want to, you know," she whispered, "see him. I just couldn't keep myself from asking once I heard him laughing. Is it wrong that I wanted some answers?" I could tell that she forced her tone to be lighter. "And punching him on the way out wouldn't be so bad either." Something in me twisted, and I grabbed the stuffed monkey Edward got me before I moved into the dorm. This way, my hands would be too busy to let out the punching energy_ I_ felt behind my tightened fists. Poor monkey. It was a good thing he didn't have circulation.

"Well, of course not, Bella," I sat down on the bed. "You dated the guy all through high school. You were practically engaged to him." I paused. "What was he laughing about?"

She shrugged. "I don't know; he was with some friends. And _her, _I guess." The way she said _her_ reminded me for some reason of the crazy black and white melodramas my mom would sometimes watch. I was just surprised that Riley could get another girlfriend at all. Unless she didn't have a problem with his extracurriculars. I wondered briefly—and _very _silently—whether Riley had cheated on Bella with this 'new' girlfriend.

I frowned, unable to keep the anger from my voice. "I wonder what fun, _recreational_ things they found to do."

"I can't believe I did that," groaned Bella, falling back onto my giant mound of pillows. "It was humiliating."

"Lesson learned, then?"

"Lesson learned."

"Bells, what were you _really_ calling for, subconsciously, I mean, if you didn't want to meet him for coffee?"

She sat up beside me, silent for a very long moment. Dad would call this an opportunity to practice patience. I was working on _Patient_ all the time, but I was nowhere as good at it as he was.

When she finally opened up, I felt so relieved I had to sigh. "It's going to sound bad."

"Trust me, it couldn't be that bad, compared to the alternative." As soon as I said it, I wondered.

"I guess. I heard he had a new girlfriend. Part of me wanted to know what was replacing me."

My heart twisted. "Oh Bells, no one could ever replace you. You were way too good for that piece of shit."

"Alice Cullen!" Her mouth fell open.

"It's true! He treated you like crap. I never understood why you stayed with him as long as you did."

She shrugged. "That's all there was." This, I understood perfectly. "It just happened. And I guess... I wanted it to work. I didn't want to be my parents."

My arms threw around her, pulling her into a hug. "You do that by finding the _right_ man. A real man would help. One that treats you like you deserve. And one that does not engage in binge drinking or the abuse of illegal substances." I realized I had taken to creepy muttering, and brought myself back. "Your parents knew when they had to quit to stay healthy."

"Charlie's still in love with Renee," she sighed, shaking her head.

"Bella. You are your own person. Stubbornly staying with something that is not healthy does nothing to help you be different from your parents, whether they've moved on or not."

A strangled laugh escaped her lips. "I'm so messed up."

"No," I said, "you're human."

"I don't want to be," she wrinkled her nose.

"That makes two of us, but it looks like we're stuck with it." I shrugged at her half-smile. "And if we're stuck with being human, we might as well have fun."

"Alice Cullen, what are you planning?" Just like that, the heaviness lifted. I knew that was all I was going to get out of her. Bella was notorious for opening up part of the way or glossing over the depth of her emotion. Maybe I had taken one too many psych courses, but that didn't seem healthy to me.

And maybe it was because I also had secrets that I let it all drop. I knew what it was like to need to keep some things private. She carried on ranting despite my inner monologue. "Because I can tell you now, I don't want any part of it."

"Unfair!" I pouted. "You haven't even heard what I want to do yet, and you're turning me down?"

"I'm your best friend," she mocked, "I don't even have to hear it." Ouch, that hurt.

"It wasn't going to be shopping."

She raised an eyebrow.

"It wasn't!" I insisted. "I mean, if we happen to arrive early and and stop in a store or two on the way to Murphy's Pub, that would be... acceptable. I need a new belt."

"Murphy's, huh?" I could see her internal struggle tilting in my favor."

I shrugged. "Yes, we can stop at the bookstore on the way. You don't even have to change."

"Promise?"

"I mean, if you wanted to, you could, say, put on a top that's a little more-" as soon as my hands began gesturing toward her, Bella backed away as far as she could, given my bed and the wall.

"No." She was so unnecessarily stubborn. I didn't understand it. Did I not propose things that looked spectacular on her _every time_ we went out? You'd think the girl would begin to have a little faith. _One day..._

"I said _if you wanted to_. Someone would think I was talking about torturing you. Or making you eat mushrooms."

"Ew, fungus." Bella's nose wrinkled, in a way I knew my brother thought was adorable, even if he never used the words himself. Perhaps one day he'd actually tell Bella about it, instead of me.

"Like I said... Just go grab your bag already. That little across the body leather number I got you for your birthday would go great!" I shouted after her as she fled down the hall. Typical Bella. I rolled my eyes, even though I knew she wasn't there to see it. Sometimes, a girl needs a good eye roll to release the tension.

I really needed some of Murphy's chocolate stout cake. Stat.

One thing I'll say for Bella—she's fast when she wants to be.

Her unfortunate lack of girl fussiness ensured that she rushed back into my room within five minutes, and one unfortunate bus ride later, we arrived on the North Block.

I tried to pay Bella's bus fare to keep her from complaining, but she wouldn't let me. Nor did she complain, really.

Actually, you could say that the girl didn't complain enough. I mean, the token bus mumbler practically fell on top of her, and she just helped him up with a smile. Classic Bella.

As soon as the bus reached our stop, I grabbed Bella's hand and began heading for my favorite boutique. Sensibility sat on the corner of Camdon & Bates and had the best one of a kind pieces.

I could hear Bella groaning behind me but chose to ignore it.

"Do we have to go shopping?"

"Bella, you ruin all my fun." She sighed. Again. "_We_ do not have to go shopping at all. But _I _need a new belt and _I _know the perfect one. And it's in here."

I turned to look at her without releasing her hand. "Bella. It's just one tiny belt. _You_ don't have to buy anything. You don't even have to look at anything. Just come inside."

"Fine. But I'm not buying anything."

"Of course not."

"And you're not buying anything for me."

"Okay, Bella. I just want a belt. In and out. Scouts honor." I held up three fingers and she rolled her eyes but smiled the go-ahead. "At least this time," I said.

I pushed open the shop door and the bell tinkled. The woman behind the counter immediately looked up.

"Miss Cullen!"

"Hi Marielle. Good to see you this week. And, please, it's just Alice," I told her for what felt like the thousandth time.

"What can I get for you today, Miss Alice?"

I thought I heard Bella mumbling something that could be conceived as rude, so I widened my smile and spoke louder. "I'm looking for a belt today."

"We got some new ones in this week. Do you want me to show you?"

I shook my head. If I wanted to keep my promise to Bella, I'd have to keep Marielle behind the counter. "No, but thank you. I know just the one.

No more than three minutes later, I walked out of the shop, my new copper belt curled carefully at the bottom of the bag.

"Are we done now?" Bella asked.

"Oh stop complaining. That was barely five minutes. All the shops close in ten, except, well... I was thinking of stopping in Barnes & Noble. But if you don't want to, we don't have to..."

"No, no. We can go to Barnes & Noble." I didn't hide my smirk, and Bella knew me well enough to interpret it correctly. "You promised me earlier. And book shopping is not shopping."

"Really?" I cleared my throat. I had this; the battle was already won. "You go into a store. You look around, see if something catches your eye. You're sort of prejudge by the way it looks, but you never really know until you try it on—read the back cover or an excerpt from the inside. Some you carry around or put down and come back to, deciding if you're going to spend your hard earned cash on it this time. Other things you know you have to have, and you make a mad dash for their rack—or shelf, hoping they aren't sold out. If you've no idea what you want, you go to the old standby sections. In my case, the party dresses. In your case, classic romance. Book shopping is exactly the same as clothes shopping."

Bella opened the door to Barnes & Noble with a sigh. Just further proof she knew I was right.

"Bargain books, then Classics?" Bella nodded. While she skimmed the giant bin of crappy fitness and mystery books that no one wanted, I snuck out my phone and texted Edward.

Bella was too absorbed in her book trolling to pay attention to the buzz my phone made. I smiled at Edward's reply. Whatever happened tonight, it sure was going to be interesting.

I pulled a book from the bottom of the bin. "_Easy Microwave Meals_. $1... any interest?" Bella took the book and paged through it. "Then you can quit complaining about not being able to cook in your dorm room."

After skimming a few pages, Bella tucked the book under her arm and headed back the theatre section.

I veered to the left for the books on costume design while Bella headed for Shakespeare. "Isabella Swan, if you buy one more version of _Romeo & Juliet_, I might be sick."

Her blush gave her away—as if her tucking the volume underneath the cookbook wasn't a dead giveaway in itself "Bella, honestly."

"It's a new volume. It has extra essays."

"Uh huh. You know Bella, if you collected clothes like you collect _Romeo & Juliets_, I wouldn't have a problem dressing you every time we go out."

She grumbled something about dress up and paper dolls, which I chose to ignore. "If you insist upon purchasing that, I suppose I can't stop you," I frowned. Given the price of Shakespeare these days, I guessed that Bella held a decent jersey baby doll in her arms. Or at least half of one. Not designer, but I could only push Bella so far, as she refused to let me buy her anything unless it was a holiday. "So let's go before you find another edition that you don't yet have. I'm ready for cake."

Bella paid for her books and I snatched a Runway magazine from the display by the counter. "And you complained because I wanted _one_ belt in a style and color that I don't have."

"Yes, but how many belts do you have?"

"Not one like this." She opened her mouth. "Not one _identical_ to this. And stop making up absurd qualifiers."

By this time, we'd reached Murphy's "Let's sit near the back. I grabbed Bella's arm before she could sit down and pushed her toward a larger table.

"What are you doing? We don't need all these chairs."

"Oh hush, Bella. You never know."

"Alice..." Thankfully, we were interrupted by a waitress.

"We'll have a Coke, whatever Merlot you have, and two chocolate stout cakes, please," I smiled, offering up my I.D. before she could ask.

Bella waited until the waitress was out of earshot. "Why do we need two pieces of cake? One is plenty. And what if I didn't want Coke?"

I stared at her. "What were you going to order?"

After a pause, she said, "Coke. But still."

"I was just saving us time," I waved off her concerns, all the while my eyes kept darting back to the door.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing." Though I dismissed her, I could tell by the way he spoke that we would not have an easy wait of it.

"You're hiding something. What's going on?"

"Don't be silly. You're worrying for nothing."

I had about a minute before Bella would press that I didn't answer her question. I suppose I could have just told her that Edward and the boys were coming, but honestly, I wasn't a 100% sure how she would react. She hadn't brought up Edward's song this afternoon, and I hadn't forced it one her, given what she'd just told me about Riley.

She'd have to be completely clueless not to put it together that Edward had written the song about her. And though she certainly had her moments, she wasn't _completely_ clueless. As much as I'd been hoping she'd run up to me afterward, gushing about how sweet Edward was to write a song just for her, it wasn't Bella's style, and her silence was starting to worry me. How long could Edward get away with hanging around Bella, acting as though he wanted nothing more than friendship with her—before Bella noticed?

I mean, I had spotted his interest within five seconds of their first meeting, his intrigue after the first day, and his infatuation by the end of the first week. Granted, I had lived with Edward for the past eight years, so I knew him a little better than most people.

Still, Bella seemed completely oblivious. It was kinda disgusting. And I was sick of her moping. So she had a shitty boyfriend before. Should she let him ruin her whole life? Edward would say I'm being insensitive, and-I may agree-just a tad hypocritical, but Bella was strong enough to move on and not just a _little_ upward. She was her own worst enemy.

And it was annoying me like white socks with sandals. Honestly. Whoever thought that trend was okay needed his head examined.

"Alice, why won't you tell me what's going on? I'm not going to be mad, I just need to know."

"Nothing is going on, Bella. Just relax and enjoy the surprise."

"So there is something going on..." Bella mumbled, "and you know I hate surprises."

"You're sucking all the fun out of life. I went to the bookstore with you. Leave me alone."

She picked at a groove in the wooden table. "You like the bookstore, too."

"Irrelevant." There was a pause, and Bella frowned. Just then, the waitress appeared, sliding two giant cake slices and our drinks onto the table. "Thank God."

A draft slid under the table. A rather long, cold draft.

Edward, didn't even glance around; he walked straight toward our table. Emmett was the door prop letting in the wind.

"Oh," Bella said as she spotted them.

"You don't mind, do you?"

She sighed. "No. The extra cake suddenly makes more sense."

"Emmett is a vacuum."

"Hello ladies," Emmett grinned, pulling out a chair in the loudest possible way. I'm fairly certain several of the drunks at the bar cringed at the squeal his chair rode across the floor.

"Emmett." I was very glad Bella got along so well with my brother and his friend. Because really, he was my brother. I wasn't not going to see him. And he and Emmett were a package deal. Of course, Emmett was easier to like than Edward. At least at first. And as long as you weren't named Rosalie Hale.

"Cake, Nice!" was the only reply Em offered, and I pushed the extra piece of cake to him. Bella shoved hers a little closer to me. She speared a forkful of our piece and looked at me out of the corner of her eye.

"Where's Jasper?"

Edward shrugged. "He said had to study."

"Studying. That's what the kids are calling it these days," Emmett managed to make clear through a mouthful of cake.

"You, know, Em, some people, believe it or not, do actually study."

"They are called nerds. Or mutants. Not people. No, scratch that. Mutants are cool. They're called nerds."

"They're called future graduates. You might want to consider becoming one."

"You're occasionally funny, Bella.." Emmett shoveled more cake in. I looked. Perhaps I should have gotten three pieces.

"So, what can I get you fellas?" The waitress returned and returned extra nice, no doubt due to the presence of testosterone at the table.

The boys ordered then talked about their day. Emmett tried –unsuccessfully- to back out of dancing. Beers, stew, and a giant's plate of nachos came and started to go.

It was a mark of how good the food was that Edward wasn't moping about Bella's reaction to her song. Or maybe it had something to do with the lie I'd told him. Bella _would_ have been shyly full of praise had she known her own mind as well as I did. And her not wanting to bring it up because she was slightly embarrassed—but not in a bad way—wasn't that much of a stretch to imagine. At least not the first part.

"Alice, what's going on?" Edward interrupted some conversation about an upcoming campus festival. "Alice? You keep starting out the window. There are plenty of intoxicated strangers to stare at inside."

"Leave me alone Edward. I want to dance. Bella?"

She immediately colored. "I can't do that," she said, nodding toward the Ceili dancers.

"They're all drunk anyway. We'll make it up. Boys?"

"Good here," Emmett grunted. It was clear he was way too busy cosying up to his nachos and beer. Edward just smiled-which, may I say, is his rather annoying way of saying no. Because if he answers with a smile, it somehow makes his ignoring you more tolerable? Right.

Before Bella could properly hook her legs to the chair, I tugged her hand and practically carried her toward the live band.

Jumping into the circles before she could think was obviously the better option, aside from the small danger of being trampled. Minimal, at most.

We were just finally settling into the rhythm—well, I was at least, Bella kept tripping over herself, though she managed to remain upright—when some middle-aged man bleeding beer rammed into her shoulder. Bella spun out of line...

and right into Royce King Jr.

"Hello, Rose." I stepped out of line, steadying one of my best friends and sizing up the other's attitude. "I thought you were busy."

"It's my night out with Royce." She simultaneously managed to smile up at him and glare at me. I couldn't ignore that the girl had a talent. But please. Every night was her night with Royce. Or at least, whenever Royce wanted it to be. Her boyfriend time dictated her schedule more than I liked. A lot more. Even if I wasn't her friend, the fact that he'd caused her to miss too many dance practices would have done it. And as far as I was concerned, _one was_ too many.

"Royce, how lovely to see you." _Now would you please leave town and make my life easier?_ Maybe if I dangled a liqueur bottle outside, he would run for it. Or maybe not. But these thoughts kept me sane. And polite. Plus, the mental images I conjured up were lovely. I still held onto the hope that Rose would one day con Royce into buying her a Bugatti and then use it to run him over. Edward and I had already discussed how to cover up the crime.

But Royce had said enough of the right things around her family and bought Rosalie all the right gifts. So it seemed as if _one day_ was an eternity away.

I'd asked them to sit with us, despite my protests that Royce wasn't enough of a man to count as a person. None aloud, of course.

"We'll sit here," he insisted, pointing to a table nearly touching our own but just far enough away to be counted as a separate table. Rose pulled her chair away from where he held it and shifted closer to our table. I glanced at Edward, who smiled. Perhaps our chance to bury the body wasn't quite as far away as we'd thought. A girl could hope.

_How romantic,_ I thought as the waitress set two fingers of scotch in front of Royce. It wouldn't surprise me if they knew him here, but it was slightly more respectable than his usual seedy bar. Although, it was possible I would hate just about anything he did, since he was a douchebag.

Sitting down, I finally had a chance to look properly at Rosalie. Or rather, her new hardware.

"Royce gave it to me tonight," she fingered the chain of diamonds at her neck. All real, I'm sure, with an obnoxiously impressive caret pedigree. "One year."

I tried to repress a shudder. One year with that idiot was enough to make a person question certain things—like whether Satan had moved his seat to south central New York.

"Oh, And you came... here?"

"We went to eat first. At the sushi house."

"Raw fish? That shit is nasty." Emmett, eloquent as always knew just what to say to piss Rose off.

"Actually, sushi is a blanket term. It doesn't necessarily indicate raw fish. That's sashimi." Emmett stared stupidly at Edward, who shrugged and continued with his explanation, gesturing to me. "Our parents like to go out to the sushi house once a month. We had to learn how to order."

Rosalie turned her nose up, pleased at Emmett's ignorance. "It's not for everyone. Especially those who are not refined enough to appreciate it's taste."

Emmett took another swig of his beer. "I still say it's pansy food."

"Have you ever eaten Sushi?" Rosalie asked while Royce sloshed his scotch around in his glass and downed the remaining half.

The sound of Emmett's beer bottle on the table had me counting for the first time... two, three.. how had he drunk four bottles already? "When I eat something raw, I like it to be bleeding." He was still plenty sober though. Plenty enough to stare at Royce while answering Rose's question.

This was not going well at all.

"Do I know you?" Royce asked with narrow eyes.

"Emmett McCarty," Emmett looked three times his size, stretched across the table like that, his hand reached in front of him. "We've met."

Shocking that Royce didn't take his hand, but Em just shrugged it off and used that hand to eat a nacho—like that had been his intention all along. "How's the job going, pretty boy?"

Wow. Who let Emmett have beer? His polite factor was occasionally better than that... sometimes... if he tried really hard.

"Company's doing well." Royce began and then spouted off some financial vocabulary that no one really cared about. "You're still in school?" He said the word with derision, as if Em were a toddler.

I took a deep breath, but it seemed, as ready as Emmett always was for a fight, he didn't really care about this insult.

"Sports medicine," Rosalie offered up. "Right?" She knew exactly what she was doing. And all because of that one time that Emmett may have gone a bit toward the crass end while asking her out. Ever since then, she'd gladly participate in his torture. Which for Rose, was a sign of unwanted and unexplainable affection from her end. If she hated you, it was much worse. She liked Emmett, she just didn't want to like Emmett. Not the jump-in-his-pants way that Emmett clearly liked Rosalie, but enough to tolerate him at least.

Royce, on the other hand, clearly hated Emmett. Emmett liked to think he was just jealous, and for once, I agreed. Emmett's muscle mass alone was enough to make any guy in the place nervous. And Royce not liking people really wasn't that strange. Well, non-female people in any rate.

Emmett nodded once, taking another drink."

"That sounds... interesting." Royce drained his second double. It was a good thing Rosalie never felt the need to drink. She'd be driving him home by the end of the night.

"I can break a third of the bones in your body... and reset them for you, if I like." Emmett said this like fact, rather than a challenge. Perhaps the beer wasn't as bad for him as I'd thought.

"Did you two try the Ceili dancing?" Edward cut in. Emmett's nonchalance must have been making him nervous, too.

Rose shook her head, her blonde curls bouncing in the dim bar lights. "No, we just got here when Bella bumped into us, literally."

Edward smiled at Bella, who offered up a muffled 'Oops' from where she hid behind her hands.

"Plus, Royce insists he can't dance."

"He does well enough on Saturdays." W_hen he comes... and actually tries._

Royce began to argue. "I'm telling you, Royce, if you would just get over whatever is going on in your head, you could be half decent." _Perhaps a lobotomy could help with that?_

It was then that something slammed into my pump from under the table. I glared at Emmett. If it were up to him, he'd stretch Royce out, fling him to mars, and take his place by Rosalie's side, but things with Rosalie were rarely simple. As much as I'd prefer just about anyone to Royce, if Emmett didn't back off a bit, Rosalie _would_ end up hating him.

"You could," I mumbled at Royce. He declined a reply and chose instead to take a drink. Charming.

An uncomfortable silence fell.

"So! Rosalie, we met your cousin today." My head slipped to the side. Not Bella too. _Whose idea what it to come here... Oh, mine. Right_.

She had the nerve to smile, the traitor.

"Who?"

"Jasper?"

"Oh, yeah, him."

"What does that mean?" I couldn't help asking.

"He's the emo one," Rosalie explained, sipping on a diet Pepsi, "and the fuckup. I don't think he ever did one thing someone told him to." She paused for a minute to take another sip of Pepsi while I filed this into the databank of what I knew about him. "I rather like him... when he's not being emo."

I did not smile. Much.

"That's strange. Alice got him to agree to dance in her Lindy." I might have to kill Bella later. Or drag her shopping. She was definitely going to pay me in shopping for this.

Rose's eyes snapped to my face. "You got him to do _what_?"


	4. The Great Rose and Royce Dilemma

A/N: Yep, it's been forever. Thanks to those two annoying people who tortured me with promises of face-licking & feet if I didn't update. To make it up to you, I'm shooting for two within a week.

I put in a little last chapter refresher in italics in case you've forgotten what happened. I know I did... just kidding. Please, please, puhleeze review, even though I've been horrible about updating on schedule.

I do not speak the non-English language included here. I did research (& have personally heard the language spoken), but if needed-please correct me.

The Twilight Saga is not mine. Never was, never shall be- though sometimes I like to pretend. This chapter brought to you by Louis Vuitton luggage sets. Unfortunately, I don't own one of those either.

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**The Great Rose-and-Royce Dilemma**

"_Who?"  
_

"_Jasper?"_

"_Oh, yeah, him."_

"_What does that mean?" I couldn't help asking._

"_He's the emo one," Rosalie explained, sipping on a diet Pepsi, "and the fuckup. I don't think he ever did one thing someone told him to." She paused for a minute to take another sip of Pepsi while I filed this into the databank of what I knew about him. "I rather like him... when he's not being emo." _

_I did not smile. Much. _

"_That's strange. Alice got him to agree to dance in her Lindy." I might have to kill Bella later. Or drag her shopping. She was definitely going to pay me in shopping for this. _

_Rose's eyes snapped to my face. "You got him to do _what_?"_

I waved my hand, hoping it didn't seem like too much. "It wasn't hard. And Edward helped."

"You give me too much credit, Alice," Edward shook his head.

Maybe, but I wasn't making this up just because. I glared at him, as covertly as possible. And let me say—it's not easy.

"I don't believe it," Rose insisted. "This is the kid who literally touched the stove burner because his mom told him not to."

"Hardcore." Of course Emmett would think so.

"We spent that family dinner in the emergency room, while Jasper's fingers were treated for second degree burns. I'm sure he's missing fingerprints."

"Like Men in Black?"

Rose paused. "Yes, McCarty. Like Men In Black."

"Sweet."

"Really?" Emmett only smiled, which irritated Rosalie more. It was when the smile appeared on _her_ face that I knew it was time to change topics. "Well if you're really that stupid, go right ahead. I'll even help you light the burner."

Royce finally joined the table's conversation, starting up a quiet round of laughter at Emmett's expense. Although, as Emmett only smirked, you couldn't really say it was damaging. And that's assuming Royce actually knew what he was laughing at.

"You can light my-"

"Who wants to see my belt?' I asked, whipping it out of my purse and shoving it under Rosalie's nose." Royce was pretty well toasted, but Rose would have a harder time missing even half an innuendo.

Rosalie looked at Emmett, then at me. I shook my head every so slightly, eyes flickering toward Emmett's beer. She knew exactly what I meant as she picked up the leather and stretched out the artfully weathered buckle.

"Nice," she said with as little interest as she could manage to play off. As much as Rose loved fashion, she probably would have chosen something else for herself.

Royce leaned in. "I'm ready. Let's go," he whispered so quietly that I was sure only Rose was meant to hear.

Rose turned her head "Okay, give me a minute," and she held out her hand. "Keys."

"I'm fine." And with those two words, the table fell silent.

"You're funny," Rose remarked, not moving her hand. "Give me the keys."

"I said, I'm fine. " Royce shoved his chair away from the table and stood. To his credit, he held his liquor well. He didn't even sway. Obviously the cur had lots of practice.

With a lazy smile, he stuck his hand in his pocket and drew out a key ring with a rhinestone dollar sign mounted on a leather square. Classy.

Rosalie tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder, just barely filling the silence. "I'm not getting in the car with you unless I'm driving.

He swore under his breath. "I'm fine."

This volley was not completely foreign, but I hadn't seen it in a while.

"Come on, man. Don't be an ass."

In that instant, my eyes flew to Edward's and we both stood just in time for Royce's reply. "Mind your own god-damn business."

I swear the squeal of Emmett's chair was hooked up to a megaphone. A few heads close to our table turned. Rosalie simply stood, brushed off her mini and turned to Royce.

"Stop. Give me the keys." She sounded like she was talking to a toddler.

"Let's go," Royce answered, shoving a chair out of the way and moving toward the door.

Rosalie made to follow him , but I grabbed her hand. "He'll give me them outside, Alice. If the Hulk here-" she glared at Emmett, who _was_ looking rather Hulk-like, all hunched over the table- "hadn't opened his mouth, I'd have them already.

"I wa-" Rosalie stopped Em with one look.

"Be careful," I insisted, not knowing what else to say to her when she was in her Stage B mood. "Text me later?"

She smiled. "Yeah."

As soon as the door shut, Emmett's frame shuddered before he sat down. "I hate that fuckweasel."

"Really, Emmett? I never would have guessed. You should probably avoid antagonizing him in the future, though. Rose is attached to him."

"Why?" he asked Bella. "Because that is about the douchiest Douchebag in the kingdom of douchebags."

"I don't know," Bella replied, her answer sounding like a whisper when compared with his question.

"It's Alice's fault, you know."

"Thank you, Edward."

"It is," he insisted despite my glare, "you just _had_ to say something to her."

"I only said it once..."

"What did you say?" demanded Emmett.

"I just mentioned that he should treat her better."

"And you couldn't believe she would put up with his shit."

"And you called his parents pretentious-and said that she should tell him if he thinks she's so f-ing high-maintence, he should upgrade his I.Q."

"I did not!"

"No, I remember that phrase as well." Edward chimed in after Bella. "And Rosalie is so stubborn, she's stayed with him just to spite you ever since."

Bella, the fair jumped to my defense. "Rose isn't that stupid. And he _was_ charming in the beginning. We _all _liked him."

"Not me," Emmett mumbled.

"You don't count. " I waved a hand at him. "You weren't there in the beginning beginning. Not that that matters. You'd probably hate him anyway.

"I don't know why she's still with him. Except he does buy her nice things..."

"Alice," Bella chided, "she's not that shallow, either."

"Maybe not _that_ shallow. But that's the only thing I can figure out. I'd go out with a man for a Louis Vuitton luggage set and a flat-screen, too."

Emmett took a swig of his beer bottle, not even noticing its emptiness.

The mood was sufficiently killed. Lovely. I looked at Edward and he was already there. Nodding, he stood.

After Emmett paid his tab, the silence became unbearable. "Hey, at least there's dance tomorrow!"

"Tomorrow?"

"It's 12:04 a.m. Friday. Technically, dance is tomorrow."

Emmett groaned, the bastard. "I am not coming."

"But, Em, you promised!"

"I did not. I'll learn your dance, but I'm not coming to class. Unless Royce dies of alcohol poisoning tonight."

"Well, unfortunately, I'm not seeing that in his immediate future. He holds his liquor very well."

"Are we going?" asked Bella. " I have to be up in six hours. And some of us actually like to sleep," she added, smiling at me.

"Fine, if you insist. Edward-"

"Yes, I'll give you a ride back."

"I knew you were my favorite brother."

"I'm your only brother."

"That way the competition is more fierce."

"Alice, I don't think that-"

"It makes perfect sense, Bella."

"I'm still not dancing Saturday."

"Fine, Emmett! I'll get you in class soon enough."

"Don't bet on it." I froze. And slowly turned to him.

Oh, this opportunity proved too good to pass up. "I would love to, thanks."

Emmett smiled. "You'll lose."

"I don't know," Bella disagreed, "you wouldn't catch me betting against Alice."

"I bet you a piece of Guinness chocolate cake, since you ate most of mine today. And, if _you_ win, I'll buy you two pieces and a beer to go with them." Emmett pulled up level with me, a shit grin plastered all over his face, and stuck out his hand. "Deal. Get ready to loose, Mac."

"I don't like to loose, McCarty."

"I promised that I would learn the shit, but not in class. This will be the easiest bet I've ever won."

"That's because you haven't bet against me." I just hoped I was right in feeling that Royce was on his way out. I mean, it took forever for Rose to get him to agree to dance in the first place—at least by her standards. If Rosalie didn't wise up and dump him soon, he would probably quit.

We stepped up to Edward's Volvo, and I graciously let Emmett take shotgun; he needed the extra legroom. My four feet eleven, on the other hand—not so much. I waited until he got good and comfortable, actually settling into the leather seats with a sigh.

"Oh, Em?"

"Sorry, Alice. Too late to back out."

"Oh, I don't want to back out. I just wanted to remind you that you also promised you'd come to class if you could dance with Rosalie."

"I didn't promise!" he argued, but I could tell by the way his voice fell at the end that he wasn't so sure. Emmett expelled so much verbal diarrhea that he sometimes lost bits and pieces of conversations before they were sent to memory.

"You did."

"Well, Royce isn't dead. And Rosalie is still pissed at me, so it doesn't matter."

"I just wanted to remind you, that's all." I smiled. This would be a piece of cake. Literally.

Edward dropped Bella and I off first before driving to his and Em's off-campus apartment. He lived in the dorms his first year, but couldn't take the lack of privacy—or the lack of personal piano room. Not to mention playing time. I'm pretty sure he paid something like four fines for noise in his first few weeks alone.

Originally, Edward had wanted me to move in with him, and Mom and Dad were more than willing to help me pay for the apartment—or my own if I wanted one, for that matter, but I just felt like it was another thing to add to the tab of 'I'll never be able to repay them for...' so I decided to apply for Resident Advisor. The job perks ensured they didn't have to pay for my room and board at all.

Plus, I liked living on campus. I was closer to my classes, my friends, the dance studio, and all the other things I loved about college. Except the major shopping, but that's what cars and brothers were for.

Bella & I walked up the stairs in silence, and when we reached the fifth floor, she insisted on going right to bed. I didn't know why she took that extra class, or how much going to bed had to do with her wanting sleep, and how much of it was that she felt afraid I was going to talk about Edward's song or Riley again. Or maybe rehash the Great Rose and Royce dilemma. I'd been told that I could be unfortunately persistent when I wanted something. And frighteningly obsessive up until the point that I got it.

One of my better qualities, if you ask me.

Anyway, most of the time I could tell what Bella was thinking, but sometimes she was so hard to read that, even if I knew what she would do, I couldn't tell which of the five possible reasons was hers. Usually I picked the most absurd and went with that.

I suppose she _could_ have gone to bed early because she was actually tired. Or-

"Hey, Alice?" A mass of dark curls peered around the corner, breaking through the messy thought chain banging around my head.

"Hi Bre." She stepped out from the lounge in relief. "Let me guess: you locked yourself out again."

"I only left to wash my bowl and Rhea locked it."

"Uh huh. This is why you take your keys with you."

"I know, I'm so sorry. I only left for a sec." I knew what question would come next. Sure enough: "Do you have to charge me?"

I eyed her sideways as we walked down the hall. "If I don't charge you, I could get in big trouble with my boss. And if any of the other girls found out, they would say I'm playing favorites."

"I know..." she replied hesitantly.

"You could have just called down to the front desk, you know."

"But they're mean. You're nice." Bre smiled as we reached her door.

"How long have you been waiting?"

"An hour and a half?"

I pushed my key in the door and turned. "Consider it a trade off."

"You bet! Thanks, Alice!"

"A trade-off that never happened."

"Oh, right." She smiled and waved, disappearing into the room.

If I got caught not charging the lockout fine, I could get in serious trouble. But I liked the poor girl, and she always seemed to be left locked out for the most unlucky reasons.

I glanced up to check my whiteboard before opening the door. A few hellos, a vulgar joke-erased that-and a heater problem that would just have to wait until 8 a.m.

Throwing my purse on its hook by the door, I grabbed my sketchbook and flipped open to the latest designs. As a part of our Fashion junior showcase, we had to come up with five different designs for a line–no parameters. Three of the five we would have to sew into wearable designs, finding our own models for a fashion show to be judged by our professors, other arts faculty, and one very important special guest, yet to be decided. No pressure or anything.

Uncapping my felt-tip, I did a quick re-sketch and tweaked a few things. As I examined the few, I decided to check my messages on the dorm phone all RA's were required to have. Shooting a few more pen strokes across the page, I keyed in the voicemail code and listened.

Campus-wide message one: health fair. Brilliant. Delete. The tone for the second message sounded, and then, silence. My pen paused as I listened for another moment. It sounded as if someone was there, breathing—but we got wrong numbers all the time. People were constantly calling the university and keying in the wrong voice-mail code. And that didn't include the local high school kids doing a 90's throwback prank call about pizza. I waited just another oddly uneasy moment before punching delete. Number three: Campus-wide message about activities meeting. I really wished they would skip those. They clogged up the inbox.

The next tone sounded and I clicked it over to speaker, suddenly exhausted. I lay my head on the pad and listened to more silence. Okay, not again.

If I was getting prank called, I would refuse to listen to my voice mail. Come to think of it, that was a pretty good excuse. Maybe I could finally convince our resident director to do away with the phones all together.

"Mary Alice?" My stomach flipped like a switch, sending a blast of cold through my veins and instantly raising goose-bumps.

"Mary Alice," the voice on the other end of the phone took a deep shaky breath, "it's good to hear your voice." She laughed. I wanted to pick up the phone, take it off of speaker so the sound would be softer, so that maybe, if I was touching something, it would seem real. But my hands just wouldn't listen to what my brain was trying to tell them. "Even if it's not really you on the other end."

How did she find me? "I can see that you're doing well; you're happy... I'm glad, Mary Alice." Another pause. More breathing. Or maybe it was my own. I couldn't say. The buzzing in my ears just wouldn't let anything else through. Maybe I was hallucinating. I hadn't had that much wine, and that was hours ago. "I love you, a leanbh na páirte."

Another beep, another date, and it was gone.


End file.
